When the Olympic Games first took place, communities gathered together to wish local athletes luck before they set off for competition. Over the years, with increased travel and training schedules, the send-off in the traditional sense became lost. Luckily, with the emergence of social media, the United States Olympic Committee has been able to rally fans together to wish not just a few athletes luck but to send well wishes to all Team USA athletes as they prepare to go for the gold.

The first Digital Send-Off took place prior to London 2012. Fans and athletes alike rallied together to share messages of support with an overwhelming response — the #GoTeamUSA hashtag started trending nationwide within 20 minutes. With the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games less than two weeks away, it is only appropriate that we launch the first send-off of the Winter Games.

Team USA’s Digital Send-Off for Sochi will take place on Thursday, Jan. 23. Fans are encouraged to share good luck messages using #GoTeamUSA and athletes will be on deck to answer questions and thank fans for their support. Please see the below schedule for ways to interact with athletes throughout the day.

@USOlympic and @TwitterSports are also encouraging as many people as possible to engage in a #SimulTweet at 12 p.m. ET. Precisely at noon, tweet your #GoTeamUSA message and be a part of the largest sports cheer before the Olympic Games.